Streep Nom #1, 1978

As a follow up to the 'Streep at 60' posts I thought I'd leave an open discussion thread for each Streep nomination's competition through the years. Her first came for 1978's The Deer Hunter (my take on her role). The nominees were:

• Dyan Cannon, Heaven Can Wait
• Penelope Milford, Coming Home
• Maggie Smith, California Suite
  
• Maureen Stapleton, Interiors
• Meryl Streep, The Deer Hunter
  

The only nomination I've never understood from that shortlist is Milford's in Coming Home (a film I otherwise love). The Golden Globes differed slightly, skipping Smith and Milford to honor Carol Burnett in A Wedding and Mona Washbourne in Stevie. I know there was never a chance that Stockard Channing's classic rendition of "Rizzo" in Grease was going to be shortlisted but it's such a film stealing enduring delight I like to pretend that she was.



My vote would go to Maureen Stapleton, who served Woody Allen's Interiors perfectly, breathing unruly uncouth life into the staid emotional terrain. She also won the StinkyLulu Smackdown for 1978 a couple years back. But in truth none of these films are anything like "fresh" in my memory. What's your take on that '78 Oscars... how would you rearrange the nominees?

The Curious Case of the White Queen

Benjamin Button isn't the only fictional character that was aging in reverse last year. We first heard that Anne Hathaway was cast as The White Queen in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland in October. It exhibited the usual flurry of excitement (big star joins other stars in high profile project) but few mentioned that the elusive character just lopped off a few decades of living.


The White Queen is nearly aways portrayed as an old woman. Maureen Stapleton was 58 when she played her,Penelope Wilton 52, Carol Channing "jam tomorrow, jam yesterday" 64, Eva Le Gallienne was 56. Nanette Fabray and Louise Fazenda were the youngest I could find, at 46 and 38 respectively, when they donned the crown in 1966 and 1933. Anne Hathaway will only be 27 when the movie arrives.

Anne's incongruous youth for this role first occurred to me this week when Anne wore bridal white to the Oscars and was obviously the youngest of the Best Actress nominees. We haven't yet seen a photo of Hathaway in Colleen Atwood* designed Queen garb but shouldn't one be forthcoming soon? So far we've seen Johnny Depp in Mad Hatter wear and we've seen our Alice (Mia Wasikowska) who, at 18 years of age, is older than Alice generally is. How much reimagining is Burton doing? We hope a lot or else why another trip through the looking glass? Like Robin Hood (discussed yesterday) there are dozens of film and television version of this tale already available. Unless you have a fresh take**, avoid.

Perhaps Hathaway only has a cameo. The White Queen is an elusive character in the Wonderland mythology. She appears only in Through the Looking Glass. She speeds away quickly from danger and sometimes she's altogether more invisible than the Cheshire Cat. Note that she doesn't appear at all in many adaptations of the Alice tale. By contrast, her sister The Red Queen (played by Helena Bonham-Carter this time) also known as "The Queen of Hearts" is always present, accounted for and ready for heads to roll. I have it on good authority that her favorite Tim Burton is Sleepy Hollow.

*Colleen Atwood is not listed as Alice's costume designer on IMDB but no one is. I'm assuming that she's the one, given her 7 previous collaborations with Burton.
** If you've never seen Dreamchild (1985) and are interested in the Lewis Carrol books, I urge you to do so. It's a really creepy biopic'ish take on Alice in Wonderland with a sensational performance by Coral Browne (Mrs. Vincent Price) as Alice all grown up.

Maureen Stapleton on Acting

I'm reading A Hell of a Life, Maureen Stapleton's autobiography right now. She originated the TONY-winning legendary role of Serafina in The Rose Tatoo before Anna Magnani, who Tennessee Williams originally offered it to, made it an Oscar-winning role in the movie version. Her thoughts on acting from great writing:

It's always special to appear in a great writer's play; having Tennessee as the author was like a gift. He gives the actor so much, and yet it's hard to describe any of it.

A line in The Rose Tattoo provides a good example. In the first scene of act 3, Serafina and Magniacavallo are out on the porch. She walks into the house and he follows her inside and asks what's the matter. She answers, "I got a feeling like I have -forgotten something." Now that line has absolutely no connection with anything else in the play; there's nothing that subsequently happens from it and there's nothing leading up to it. You can't later put your finger on whether she forgot to do this or do that. What it boils down to is, the line is a gift. You can do whatever you want with it. I don't mean the actor should go into a big number or anything like that; It simply provides the actress with something utterly attractive, a beautiful pocket of space in which to move.

"a pocket of space in which to move"... that's beautiful. Elsewhere, Maureen is less elegant. She had a mouth on her that one.
*

Supporting Oscar Hierarchy and Dianne Wiest

Today is the last Sunday in the month. Which means StinkyLulu is holding another "supporting actress smackdown" (this time it's for 1971: Ann-Margret displays her Carnal Knolwedge, Burstyn & Leachman attend The Last Picture Show, Margaret Leighton Gos Between and the 70s awesomeness sometimes referred to as "Barbara Harris" round out the pack. I just finished reading it. Yum Yum.

I'm sure that Stinky didn't like that the last post was Lead Actresses only --no edges allowed! So, for comparisons sake, here's your top 7 All Time Oscar Supporting Actress Favorites.


o1. Thelma Ritter (50, 51, 52, 53, 59, 62) six nominations and she never won :(
02. There's a six-way tie beneath her, all @ 4 nominations each. You have to start with...
Maggie Smith (65, 78, 86, 01) Could this double winner topple Ritter's supporting nomination record? She's 72 years-old but still makes a movie each year. She's keeping company with...
Ethel Barrymore (44, 46, 47, 49) Drew's Great Aunt
Lee Grant (51, 70, 75, 76)
Agnes Moorehead (42, 44, 48, 64)
Geraldine Page (53, 66, 72, 84) more on Page soon
Maureen Stapleton (58, 70, 78, 81)

Beyond that top tier, 11 women are tied including four who are still working: Glenn Close, Meryl Streep, and Frances McDormand. The latter two both still get baity roles, the former is charging towards another Emmy on Damages...

A Question/Rant of Utmost Importance
...which brings me to Dianne Wiest. I'm completely nutso for the best squinty-eyed actress ever. I just don't understand why all the high profile supporting roles have escaped her since she won her second Oscar. Think on this for a moment: Has any other double Oscar winner (male or female) won for performances as diverse as the ones she served up in Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) and Bullets Over Broadway (1994)? Aside from the fact that they're both Woody Allen projects, what connects those women? To underline her range even further let's also point out that they're very different women than Wiest's standard typecast role 'the concerned mom' which she's played dozens of times, Parenthood (1989, Oscar nominated) and Edward Scissorhands (1990) being the most famous variations and they're also very different than the women she played in other Woody Allen pictures.

Please to explain. Someone? Anyone? I don't think it's hyperbole to say that she's one of the best actors on the planet. Why is nobody giving her anything interesting to act? Where is Woody? Dump Scarlett and write something for Dianne again already. Shouldn't this woman be considered for meaty stuff like what Dench, Burstyn, Blethyn, McDormand or Bates occassionally get? Argh!

Tuesday Top Ten: Political Women

It's been just over 85 years since the Supreme Court declared the Nineteenth Amendment constitutional, thereby guaranteeing women's voting rights. It's important to remember progress like that in this day and age when so many people want to make laws limiting the rights of minorities. So when I want to commemorate something... naturally I list!

Top 10 Political Women

10 "Gudrun" in The Raspberry Reich (2004). In this hilariously raunchy Bruce LaBruce movie, she's a walking manifesto ordering her men around carelessly and spouting off endless "revolutionary" slogans.

09 The women of The Circle (2000). Every now and again my thoughts unexpectedly drift back to this group portrait of oppressed Iranian women so I thought I should include.

08 "Mrs. Winifred Banks" in Mary Poppins. I've always loved Glynis Johns (prev post). And while her indelible 1964 suffragette character 'Mrs. Banks' isn't as progressive as she thinks --constantly letting her man call all the shots-- she's still a bundle of goodhearted musical comedy fun.



"Well Done Sister Suffragette!"

07 "Tracey Turnblad" in Hairspray. I hope unknown actress Nicole Blonsky knows what she's doing in the upcoming feature film. This feisty integrationist role deservedly made Ricki Lake a star in 1988 --let's not go into what she did with the stardom-- and turned mega cheerful Marissa Jaret Winokur (who had previously won hearts in a teensy role on My So Called Life) into a Broadway sensation. Tracey Turnblad is a clean teen!

06 "Emma Goldman" in Reds (1981). I already miss Maureen Stapleton. Such a loveable enduring actress. She died a year ago today. RIP Maureen.

05 Susan Sarandon ...in general you know. And perpetually.

04 "President Laura Roslyn" in Battlestar Galactica. I haven't been thrilled with the third season of this ambitious series but Mary McDonnell is still a revelation, perfecting a long term character arc: where she once ably projected a dichotomous blend of nerves and forthright decision making, she has gradually stiffened the portrait. You don't see Laura's nerves so much anymore after a long stretch of leadership in crises but the humanity isn't a foregrounded either. Responsibility has changed her. She's almost frightening now in her steely cool.

03 "Mrs. Iselin" in The Manchurian Candidate. Arguably the cinematic pinnacle of the mother as monster. She plays her war hero son and her politican husband like a maestro.

02 "Norma Rae" in Norma Rae. When I was quite young, before I had any personal experiences with unions (before I knew that all systems were imperfect --even ones designed to protect people) I was pretty wowed by Sally Field's staunch determination and heroism. "UNION!"

01 "Tracey Flick" in Election. I love this movie. Still my favorite Alexander Payne film. You knew I would "Pick Flick!" didn't you? I'd be afraid otherwise. You just don't get in Reese Witherspoon's way when she's in pitbull mode. She will cut you.

Supporting Actress Sunday

Nathaniel speaking.

Do you miss me? I'm sorry to tease. I'm not really back. I'm back on Tuesday. But I was previously scheduled to appear at Stinky Lulu Sez today so this post was pre-created for your pleasure.

The following video is only suitable for viewing by Oscar obsessives. Seriously.

After watching head on over to Stinky's Supporting Actress Smackdown!: a three-pronged discussion of these five Oscar-nominated performances of 1958; the ditzy secretary, the hotelier, the schoolteacher, a lonely heart, and a horny hillbilly. It's all part of the first month of "Supporting Actress Sunday"



Back to the full Film Experience Blog

tags: Maureen Stapleton, supporting actress, academy awards, movies, celebrities, Oscars, lists

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Interiors features a great Maureen Stapleton performance. Stinky Lulu eloquently sings its praises.

Supporting Actress Sundays

StinkyLulu invited Nick Davis and I to participate in an insanely long project called "Supporting Actress Sunday". I'm in. I never turn down chances to pay homage to the underappreciated supporting players.

and twosies beat onesies but nothing beats three.

Today Lu' is honoring Maureen Stapleton in 1970's Airport. Read more about this project here (You too can play along at home)

They Got The Beat

StinkyLulu honors the great Maureen Stapleton (RIP)

I Don't Like You in That Way shares news on a possible rock biopic on "the GO-GOs"? Say it isn't so. At least not with this casting. Otherwise I'm there. Luv me some Belinda, Jane, Charlotte, Gina, and Kathy (and in that order)

The Film Bitch would like to remind you that A History of Violence, winner of 11 medals in our 2005 Awards race is now available on DVD. For those slow moving readers who still haven't seen it, save face now. Watch Viggo turn. See Bello burn.

Sci Fi Wire prints news that's not really news (more like an aside) from Whedon on his upcoming Wonder Woman film. Screw the invisible jet, Joss, I just wanna know if she spins. That's all I wanna know.

Queerty delivers the sad(der than I expected it to be) news that Madonna will no longer be acting in films.